Casting Off
by AerithBlack
Summary: These days, Hinata's life has become a routine: Train, teach genin, train, do missions, don't think of ex-boyfriend and his new girlfriend, and try not to disappoint loved ones. Wash; rinse; repeat. With each day, she feels her passions drain and all her self-doubt returning. But today...today is going to be different. Past!NaruHina, and [maybe not] surprise crossover!
1. The Beginning: Part 1

**Disclaimer: I own neither Naruto nor the other fandom that will be featured in this, in some form or another.**

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**1. The Beginning**

These days, Hinata Hyuga keeps up a routine. She wakes up at four-thirty in the morning, stares up at her ceiling for eight minutes, gets up, gets dressed, and then goes out to the Hyuga training grounds. She usually stays out there for a long time, and it's rare that anything can draw her back in. She doesn't even register hunger, or any of the servants calling for her. It's only when her father approaches her that she stops. When this happens, Hiashi doesn't always say much, except, "That's enough for today. You should go inside and get ready for the academy."

And even though Hinata always feels the urge to strike her palm or throw a kunai against every wooden dummy in the grounds (or to just train until her body is sore, really), she obeys. She also registers that she still has a job to do.

She gets dressed in new clothes and then heads out to the Ninja Academy. She puts on a smile for her classroom and goes on to teach all the lessons they need to learn in order to become shinobi. Sometimes, the smile is genuine. A lot of her genin have potential, even the ones who are struggling, and she feels it would be interesting to see how far they excel. She gives lectures, feedback, support, and sometimes the occasional scolding (or what can come close to it, considering how soft her tone still is, even now).

When school is over and all the students dismissed, she goes for a walk around Konoha. Sometimes, she runs into friends—such as Kiba and Shino. Sometimes, they talk and hang out. They don't see each other as much anymore, what with their different missions and individual personal lives. Kiba is apparently dating, and Shino may have become part of ANBU, if his constant absences and secret missions mean anything—he hasn't said anything, of course, but Hinata can infer.

Sometimes, Tsunade also gives Hinata missions. If that mission brings her far away from Konoha and everything orange and blonde, then she accepts it immediately, promising to put her all into it. (And she always does.)

Sometimes, Hinata passes by Ichiraku. If she doesn't see a flash of orange or pink, she sometimes goes in and orders a late lunch. Of course, this is practically never these days. She _always_ sees a flash of orange or pink when she walks past this place, usually sitting together side by side. Her stomach then twists and she suddenly doesn't feel that hungry anymore.

After her walk, she goes back to the Hyuga mansion and steps back onto the training grounds. She doesn't go in until exhaustion really gets to her.

And then, it begins again. Wash, rinse; repeat.

Today, however, is going to be very different. By the end of today, her life will change forever. She just doesn't know it yet.

For now, however, she is sitting on top of the Fourth's head and looking down at Konoha, her village; her home. For now, she is thinking of _him _and _her_, and the two of them walking hand in hand. She is thinking of three months ago, when it was her hand that was being held; when he looked at her with what seemed like love and affection. For now, she is thinking of how he is giving all that love to someone who truthfully had it all along.

Hinata is glad that he's happy, she really is. All she's ever wanted was for him to be happy, for him to feel loved—by someone, if not her. She doesn't bother wondering why he did this to her, or why he seemed to lead her on. Sometimes, things just happen, and there's nothing you can do about them.

Still, it hurts. It hurts to sacrifice your own happiness for the one you love—to let them go. It hurts to feel nothing but sadness and sometimes just _nothing _at all. It hurts to fake smiles, to act as if you've let things go, to act like you're moving on, despite feeling nothing but stagnant.

And Hinata knows she hurts her loved ones by acting this way. While many of her friends won't approach her as much—because they honestly don't know what to do to make her feel better—she feels their sad, pitying gazes on her. It made her feel angry at first. Now, now she just wants to stop feeling like a burden on the people she cares about the most—especially _him_.

Sighing, Hinata stands then. She looks over her beloved village, and closes her eyes. She just wishes she knew what to do.

"You're not going to jump, are you?"

She starts at the voice behind her and nearly stumbles, before catching herself. Then she whips around, her eyes narrowing as she gets into a stance. The source of the voice is a boy, one who is tall and gangly and doesn't look much older than her—though his clothes are strangely tattered and rather disheveled, she observes. No shinobi she has ever encountered has ever dressed like that.

Though his arms continue relaxing at his sides, Hinata doesn't let her stance falter.

"Who are you?" She asks, making her voice hard.

He tilts his head, blinking his owl like eyes only once. "You're not, right?"

"...What?"

"Jumping."

Hinata blinks. He doesn't seem like he's looking for a fight. She rests her hands, but keeps her guard up.

"No, I'm not," she answers. Then, "Why would you think I was...?"

He shrugs, then steps over to her left side and sits, legs folded. "Because that's usually how this story goes, right?" At her confused look, he elaborates, "Girl falls in love with guy; guy eventually loves her back; guy ends up leaving her in some way or another—either through death, meeting someone else, or being lost at sea, whichever; then girl falls into despair and dies of a broken heart or some bullshit like that. That's a common story I've heard, anyway."

"What makes you think it's that sort of situation?" Hinata narrows her eyes. Had she been followed? She thought she felt a weird sensation on the back of her neck, but when she checked with her Byakugan, she didn't see anyone. But then she remembers not checking behind objects, and she mentally curses herself and her weakness.

"I saw how you reacted to that guy earlier, that guy with the girl." He lets out a chuckle. "Her hair is funny. Pink. Such a weird color. Then again, I've seen weirder. Anyway," he continues. "I saw how fast you walked away. You didn't look like you knew where you were going. In fact, I know you didn't. You bumped right into me and just kept on walking without so much as an apology. And I deserve one, by the way! You made me drop my meat, right when I was all hungry as hell and crap," he frowns up at her, his eyes lit up with irritation. "That's not a crime I take lightly."

_...Is this guy serious? _Hinata resists the urge to roll her eyes and instead bows. "I apologize. I didn't mean to do so."

"Eh, it's fine." He shrugs and waves it off. "You can make it up to me later. Anyway, the point is that I saw you in that field afterwards." He gives her an odd look. "I saw those moves of yours. You know how to fight, don't you?"

Realizing that he really doesn't mean any harm, Hinata decides to sit down next to him. She nods.

"All shinobi here are required to fight," she explains. "It's how the village stays protected."

"Shin-what?" He tilts his head.

_...He must not be from around here. _Hinata searches for a word that might be more understandable. "Ninjas," she says. "I'm a ninja—one of many in this village."

His grin is so wide, it looks ready to split his face in half; it gives Hinata an odd feeling about him. It isn't the sort of smile that Naruto, Kiba, or even Lee would sport. No, this is the sort of grin that would be worn by an escaped madman.

Still, he hasn't done anything to her so far.

"Ninjas! That's really cool. Do you use a sword? Have you killed anyone? What do you guys do, exactly?"

Hinata flounders a bit at how close he's leaning towards her, but then decides to answer him in order.

"Um. Not really—only certain shinobi use them, but only as a last resort. Personally, I haven't yet, but I probably will have to. And, uh, jutsu, really."

"Jutsu?"

"I guess you can say they're styles of fighting," Hinata explained. "Many require special abilities and uses of chakra. Some just require hand to hand combat."

He looks at her, humming in interest under his breath. Then he grins that odd grin again.

"You'll have to show me sometime!"

For the first time in a while, Hinata flushes. "I-I could, but...there are so many other better shinobi around here. If you want, I can take you to them and they—"

"I don't really care for them."

"—Eh?" She blinks.

He continues grinning. "I want to learn about you."

Her flush deepens. Why would a stranger want to learn about her?

His grin goes back into a straight line on his tan face, making him suddenly look serious. "Unless you really are going to do it."

"Huh?"

"Die of a broken heart or whatever you wanna call it," he says. "I mean, I don't know much about love or relationships or anything like that, but you seemed to really take that thing with blondie hard."

Hinata frowns. "I'm heartbroken, not suicidal."

"There's a difference?"

For the first time in a long time, Hinata feels a surge of anger. She finds herself standing up and glaring down at the stranger.

"Of course there is!" She says, on the verge of yelling. "I can't believe you would even say that."

He stares at her.

"I may not be the strongest ninja in this village," she continues. "I may not even be good enough to lead my clan. In fact, I don't know what my future as a shinobi is going to be. And yes, I'm depressed and hurt and I'm still in love with someone who doesn't love me anymore, if he ever did. I can't find myself enjoying things as much as I used to, even eating, because everything just reminds me of him. But that doesn't matter! None of that matters! Because I'm still going through with my goal! I'm still going to get stronger, and I will use that strength to forge my future! There's no way I'm going to be stopped by someone judging me before knowing me!"

He doesn't respond, he just continues staring at her. Hinata glares back, feeling herself get into a stance again. Even if she did just bare her heart out and make herself more vulnerable, she still feels eager enough for a fight. It's a bit of a thrill, really. She can't recall the last time she felt so passionate for a fight or a spar.

She's shocked that he's the one to break away first. He turns his head towards the village and tilts his head down, causing his straw hat to shield his eyes and expression. Not knowing what else to do, Hinata remains standing.

Suddenly, the boy grins that grin again and smacks his knee with conviction.

"It's decided then." He stands up and places a firm hand on her shoulder. "You're going to join my crew!"

"...EH?!"

But the boy in the straw hat simply keeps on grinning, even chuckling at her flustered expression. Perhaps he is mad after all.

* * *

So, I've been reading NaruHina fics lately, because I'm often bored and wondering if one of my old OTPs (besides SasuNaru) has had some good writing and stuff.

Needless to say, I've been disappointed.

I mean...can't anyone come up with a scenario where Hinata doesn't commit suicide or do self-harm over Naruto's rejection/break up with her? I mean, I'm not asking her to become all "sexy", bitchy or basically whatever characteristic that is opposite of hers (that will usually be described as her being "stronger"), but I would like some alternative. No girl I know has ever committed suicide over a love interest. Hell, I didn't even get close when my boyfriend and I were having problems.

But yeah, this is my response to that.

As for the random crossover, well-I'm starting to get back into this fandom too. (I blame my boyfriend.) So, I thought, _Eh what the hell? I'll give it a whirl._

This will likely become a series of one-shots.


	2. The Beginning: Part 2

**Disclaimer: I own neither Naruto nor One Piece. This has been written for the sake of entertainment, not profit.**

**Also, I will eventually switch the category, don't worry.**

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**The Beginning: Part 2**

It's in the middle of the night. By now, everyone in Konoha has gone to sleep—or started their night shift guarding the gate—and all has gone quiet. Well, except for Hinata Hyuga, of course.

She walks across the Hyuga compound, to an area where it is always quiet. It always smells of flowers, prayer candles, and offerings. Underneath said objects are stones with names on them, names of members of the Hyuga clan, members who have long passed, or just recently passed.

Finally, she stops at a particular stone with a name she knows all too well. She drops the pack that she put on her back not too long before, and sits down in front of it. She lifts her head up and greets it with a sad smile.

"Good evening, Neji-niisan," she greets. "I'm sorry for not visiting so late. I just need to talk—about what happened today."

* * *

"It's decided then. You're going to join my crew!"

"...EH?!"

The boy in the straw hat chuckles, then nods. "That's right!"

Hinata gapes at him with wide eyes, before shaking away her shock. She gives him a stern look. "You can't just make a decision like that."

"Ah?" He blinks. "What do you mean? I just did."

"I-I mean," she sighs, her frustration making her more flustered. "You can't just make a decision for me!"

"Why not?" He says. "You're going to join anyway."

Her eyes narrow. _This guy..._

"I-I don't even know what sort of crew you're a part of."

"A pirate crew, of course," he replies.

"P-p-pirates?!" Hinata swallows, feeling sweat drip from her forehead.

"Ah, so you know about us!"

"N-not really. I've only heard stories about them," she replies, just as her hand reaches for a her belt, where she keeps her kunai and shuriken.

"Like fun treasure seeking adventures, beating up Marines, anything like that?"

"No..."_  
_

"Really?" His brow furrows in disappointment. "What a boring world you live in..."

She blinks. What could that mean? In any case, Hinata makes sure to brace herself. Though pirates aren't unheard of around this land, no one really knows much about them except what's passed on through word of mouth. Nothing she's ever heard about them has sounded like a good time.

"In any case, what makes you think I would join _your _crew," she says, to stall him. Did he bring anyone with him? Should she check? "We don't even know each other's names."

He hums, then places a finger on his chin. "That's true..." He looks at her again, his expression just as bright. "Let's do that then!"

"Eh?" Hinata blinks.

"We're going to have to know each other's names if we're going to sail together. I'll start!"

He tilts his straw hat back, completely revealing his wide eyes (one having a scar under it), and still wearing that mad, toothy grin. He puts both hands on his hips, a pose of confidence and absolute certainty. Despite how wary she is, Hinata finds herself staring.

"My name is Monkey D. Luffy, and I'm going to be Pirate King!"

Hinata doesn't really understand the significance of being "Pirate King", but the way he said it made it sound so important—so much so, that he didn't seem to have any doubt in his mind that he would succeed. Looking at him and hearing the conviction in his voice reminds her so much of Naruto, she can already feel the familiar hurt in her chest.

_And yet..._

"Now you."

She blinks, then lets out a yelp when he leans close to her face.

"What's your name?"

"I, um, I," she steps back and clears her throat. "My name is Hinata Hyuga."

Luffy hums, tilting his head, and then smiles. "I like it!" He quickly adds, "This means you'll join, right?"

Hinata flushes, her eyes lighting up in an irritated glare. _What's with this guy?_

"I-I-I never said that at all!"

"You didn't?" Luffy tilts his head.

"NO!"

"Okay, if you say so." He shrugs. He stares off at the village for a few moments, not really seeing anything, looking more lost in thought really. Then Luffy turns around and smiles at Hinata. "You know, my crew is pretty damn strong."

"...Eh?"

"Yeah, we're the strongest pirate crew I know," he adds, facing the village again, though it's clear that he's picturing a different place, with different people in mind. "And that's not me being biased—my crew _is_ the strongest and the best group of pirates you will ever find, no matter what world or sea. And we are only going to get stronger as we continue to travel."

"What...what does that have to do with me?" Hinata asks.

"Well, that's your goal, isn't it? Strength, getting stronger, something like that. I'm not too sure what your reasons are—and I won't ask right now, anyway," he says. "What better way to get stronger than to be around strong people?"

"My village is full of strong people," Hinata says.

"Yeah, but they're not my crew."

"Neither am I."

"The option is still open to you, though."

She stares out at her village, her home—the place full of her loved ones, the place she's willing to fight and die for, the place full of so many happy and sad and bittersweet memories. This place, where she feels more alone that ever; the place she has thought of leaving before, just to give her time for herself. Even so...

"I can't just leave," she says. "I can't betray my village like that."

"Whoever said anything about betrayal? I'm just talking about honing your strength elsewhere," Luffy retorts. "With my crew, specifically."

"I'd never be accepted back if I leave," Hinata says, more to herself than Luffy.

Luffy blinks at her, then stares. "You know, it's great that you care so much about this place—I can tell it's important to you—but I don't hear you talking about what _you_ want to do."

She looks at him, not sure what he means. "I want to be strong."

"Yeah, but for who?"

"For..." Hinata blinks. Why does she want to be strong? Her father? Naruto-kun? Her village? Her friends? For a long time, she's been wanting to become strong because she deeply admired Naruto's strength and determination. She hoped that someday, her strength would flourish and be acknowledged—not just by Naruto but by everyone. She never really wondered where her goal would take her, just wanted it to happen.

Now, what with her strained relationship with Naruto (because he has been avoiding her as much as she has avoided him) and the distance that's grown between her friends and family, she's not sure why she wants to be strong anymore. She keeps up with training and work and missions, but she can't recall why anymore; all those activities were just something to do. The only thought that's kept her going so far is that "It's for the good of the village, for everyone I care for."

Is that really enough?

Luffy's hand lands on her shoulder, breaking Hinata away from her thoughts. "When you make your decision, I'll be waiting at those gates over there," he points over at Konoha's entrance.

"I...huh?" Hinata looks at him, dazed.

"I'll have to leave at dawn, though," Luffy adds, still grinning. "So decide soon."

"Ah, I, well," she looks away, feeling unsure of what to say.

Luffy chuckles, pats her shoulder once, and then approaches the edge of the Fourth's carved head. He gives her one last grin and winks.

"See you later, Hinata!"

With that said, he takes a leap from the cliff, making sure to hold his hat in place. Hinata gasps and runs forward to grab him—or at least _something_, because there's no way a regular person can survive that jump—but she quickly realizes that her movement is too late, because Luffy starts dropping like rock. As he starts nearing the ground, he starts cackling and shoots a glance at Hinata before eyeing the roof of a house.

He lifts his arm above his head and then—

_No. No way, that's...that's impossible._

Hinata's eyes widen and she feels her heart stop right as Luffy's arm stretches and elongates like a rubber band, grabbing hold of the edge of a roof—then, he snaps up towards his hand and lets go of the roof when he's a few feet above it.

When he lands on the roof, his feet firm on the surface, he lifts his head to grin up at Hinata. He tips his straw hat, nodding, and then begins jumping away, roof to roof, his limbs occasionally doing that unnatural stretching.

"Holy crap," some villagers exclaim as they witness the scene. "Did you see that?"

"Someone who can do that...something that unnatural—!"

"Sh-should we go after him? Should we alert the Hokage?"

"...Who is he?"

"_What_ is he?"

"He's...he's probably nothing."

Hinata, on the other hand, is the only witness who remains silent. She stays standing on the cliff, continuing to watch Luffy until he's nothing but a blur, until he's beyond the village outskirts.

After a while, she finds herself doing something she doesn't do that often—she smiles.

* * *

"...Needless to say, I've made my choice," Hinata tells Neji later that day. "You probably already know what that is."

Neji doesn't reply—can't and will never reply, but the silence still has a solemn, almost disappointed atmosphere. Hinata feels another familiar hurt in her chest, one that's bloomed since Neji died; a hurt that will probably never heal.

"I know you are probably very disappointed in me," she says. "You probably think I'm weak, and you are probably very right.

"But Neji-niisan, I need to do this. For a long time, I've been living for the sake of other people—I've been improving and getting strong for the sake of other people, so I can please them, so I can be acknowledged. And for a while, that worked. I grew confident in my abilities and in my strength, though I always wanted to improve.

"But I never really thought about living this way for myself."

Hinata pauses, closing her eyes for a few moments. A breeze rolls by and she allows her long hair to sway and brush up against her cheeks. She takes a deep breath and opens her eyes again, tears stinging her eyes.

"I need to learn what it means to live for myself—because living purely for others' wants isn't making me feel happy anymore. I don't know if it ever did. I need to figure out what I want, how I want to live—and I don't think I can do that here, not right now.

"I love this village. You know I do. It isn't perfect—never was, really—but I love it all the same. I would do whatever I could to protect it, to keep it going. And I love the people in it even more, even Naruto. No matter what's happened, I still believe in him; I would still follow him anywhere, if he asked. I would do anything to help him achieve his dream. I would do anything to make sure our friends and family were safe. Even so," she pauses. "Is that really a good thing?

"I mean it is—but then why do I feel so empty? Why do I feel so sad and numb all the time? Why aren't I interested in doing things anymore? Why should I keep going on? Am I any use at all? Am I of any _worth _at all?

"I don't know if there's just one answer for all these questions. I think—this is something I need to find out for myself. And I won't be able to find out by staying here."

Hinata looks at Neji's gravestone, breathing in sharply as a tear rolls down her face. Not for the first time, she wishes Neji was here. He may still not understand the storm brewing in her mind, but any reply from him would be better than the silence.

"I know what I'm saying may not make much sense," she says, voice choking. "But I still feel this is the right thing to do—not just for me, but for everyone as well."

She stands up slowly, knowing that if she kept sitting, she would never leave. Normally, she wouldn't care. Her cousin was taken from her too suddenly and the grief still burns inside her. If the only way to be close to him was to talk to his grave all night, then she would do it without a second thought.

But she can't afford to do that now. Hinata Hyuga will never start on her new road if she were to continue being stagnant.

"Goodbye for now, Neji-niisan. I promise to come back, when I'm ready," she bows in respect. "Please, if you have heard me, try to understand."

The tombstone doesn't reply as Hinata walks away from everything she's ever known, but she feels the warm summer wind blow against her, like a farewell embrace. It may be just wishful thinking on her part, but Hinata feels it's enough anyway.

* * *

A/N: So, basically, this is a story about Hinata finding herself after living one day too long with depression. I added in Neji's death because I didn't want the basis of her depression to be just her break-up with Naruto or Sakura's "betrayal" or whatever. It's pretty much everything in between, including what's happening in her head (self-doubt, re-growing lack of worth, etc. etc.) and how her personal health is (her exhausting her body, not eating right, not sleeping right, etc.). Grief can also be a big factor in causing depression, or at least contributing to it.

Crossing over with One Piece is just for fun, really.

Also, yes, I did change the summary and title, because it just seemed to sound better.


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